
Culture & Conversation Abortion
This law was last updated on Aug 29, 2019
This law is Anti–Choice
SB 1236
Proposed
Feb 7, 2019
Co-sponsors: 11
Primary Sponsors: 1
Total Sponsors: 12
SB 1236 would prohibit abortion once a fetal heartbeat has been detected, except in the case of a medical emergency.
A fetal heartbeat can be detected as early as six weeks of pregnancy—two weeks after a person’s first missed period—and well before many even realize that they are pregnant.
The bill would require a physician to first determine whether the fetus the pregnant person is carrying has a detectable heartbeat. An ultrasound would be required to determine the presence of a fetal heartbeat. The bill does not specify what type of ultrasound.
If a fetal heartbeat is detected, the physician would be prohibited from performing an abortion unless there is a medical emergency. If an emergency exists and the fetus has not attained viability, the performing physician would need to licensed or certified. If an emergency exists and the fetus is viable, the bill would require the performing physician to be licensed and the abortion procedure to be performed in a licensed hospital.
The person who determines the presence or absence of a fetal heartbeat would be required to:
The person who performs the ultrasound for the presence of a fetal heartbeat would be required to offer the pregnant person the option to view or hear the fetal heartbeat.
A physician who performs an abortion or attempts to procure a miscarriage after the detection of a fetal heartbeat and before or during viability under the medical emergency exception would be required to declare the following in a written statement to be placed in the patient’s medical records:
A physician who performs an abortion or attempts to procure a miscarriage prior to determining a fetal heartbeat due to a medical emergency would be required to note the following in the patient’s medical records:
Update #1
8/12/19 – 8/13/19: Lawmakers on the Tennessee State Judiciary Committee spent two days considering an amendment to the bill that would prohibit abortions once a pregnancy is detected.
The amendment would prohibit any abortion from being performed when a viable pregnancy is presumed to exist or has been confirmed. The amendment defines viability as finding the presence of human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) or the presence of an intrauterine fetus with a heartbeat. HCG is a hormone produced by the placenta after implantation. Levels of HCG can be detected in the blood or urine anywhere from 11-14 days after conception. The amendment would essentially be a total abortion ban.
Under the amendment, a pregnancy is not viable only if a test indicates decreasing levels of HCG and the absence of a fetal heartbeat.
The amendment would make it a Class C felony to perform or induce an abortion upon a pregnant person when the pregnancy is viable. A physician who violates this provision would also have their medical license revoked. It would be a Class A misdemeanor for failing to determine viability or failing to record the required information in the pregnant person’s medical record.
Update #2
The state senate judiciary committee study session did not include any voting, which means the amendment is not yet attached to this bill or HB 77. It won’t be taken up again until the state legislature reconvenes in 2020.